1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electronic device and, more particularly, to a method and an electronic device for content adaptation based on an ambient environment of the electronic device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Electronic devices can display various types of multimedia content through displays thereof. Along with the development of technologies for electronic devices, electronic device users have been requiring more improvements to display screens and content.
Electronic device users may have different display environments according to ambient lighting conditions. If the users' viewing environment changes, even though the electronic devices display the same content through displays configured in the same manner, the content may look different to the users' eyes, compared to before the change of the viewing environment. To address this difference, some electronic devices may modify information relating to the displays to provide improved display screens and content.
An electronic device may control the intensity of illumination of a display in order to display an image adapted to a change in the intensity of surrounding illumination therearound. For example, when the intensity of illumination around the electronic device has increased, the electronic device may increase the intensity of illumination of the display to display a screen adapted to the intensity of illumination therearound.
When an electronic device and a user's pupil sense different ambient intensities of illumination, the electronic device does not accurately reflect, in a display, the intensity of illumination to which the user's pupil responds. For example, when it is dark around the electronic device, but a bright light is located around the user, the user's pupil contracts in response to the bright light therearound to receive only a small amount of light. When a bright light is located opposite to the user with respect to the electronic device, the user's pupil contracts in response to the bright light to receive a small amount of light. In this situation, if the electronic device decreases the intensity of illumination set for the display on the basis of the low intensity of illumination acquired through a sensor that is mounted on a surface of the electronic device orienting toward the user, the display may look very dark to the user whose pupil has already contracted.
In addition, since the electronic device modifies the intensity of illumination of the display itself and does not modify the color information of content itself, the electronic device fails to provide content more accurately adapted to ambient color information. For example, even when the ambient color of the electronic device is changed into a particular color (e.g., a reddish color) due to an influence of a light around the electronic device, the electronic device modifies the intensity of illumination of the display and fails to modify the color information of content. Accordingly, the electronic device provides the content including the distorted color information.
Furthermore, since the electronic device modifies the color information of the display based on the ambient color information and fails to control devices therearound on the basis of the color information of content, there is a limitation in creating the user's viewing environment. For example, since the electronic device passively adapts to the continuously changed ambient color information, the electronic device cannot accurately adapt and display content according to the user's intention, or must frequently perform adaptive operations.